Larry Niven

"He was shaking. A mass verbal attack can do that to a man, can smash his self-respect and set up doubts which remain for hours or days or forever. There are well-developed verbal techniques for many t…"

"There's always another problem behind the one you just solved. Does that mean that you should stop solving problems?"

"I'm being chauvinistic, he told himself. I can't judge an alien's sanity by Belt standards, can I? His lip curled. Sure I can. That ship is badly designed."

"She waited for him to explain a universe in which there was so much injustice."

"A sufficiently intelligent being will look about her, solve all questions, then cease activity."

"Stupidity is always a capital crime."

"Just take my word for it, will you? Assume I'm a genius."

"Yes, the bleeding heart was something else again. A gruesome symbol on a vivarium floor. Fingers that broke without their owner noticing. An ink drawing appearing from nowhere on a dossier cover, like…"